The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, touted as "the Greatest Show on Earth," will hold its final performance in May, after 146 years of entertaining across America.
Even as the iconic American circus prepares for the final curtain, parts of the circus' history remain in Southwest Florida, where the circus had its winter quarters for decades.
Friday at 1:30 p.m. on Gulf Coast Live, Debbie Walk, the assistant Director of Legacy and Circus at Sarasota's Ringling Museum, shares the history of the circus' "Golden Age," how it came to call Southwest Florida home, and how that history can be enjoyed today.
Also joining the program is Stephen Payne with Feld Entertainment, which has operated the circus since the 1960s and made the decision to end it's nearly century-and-a-half history of shows.